In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, executive producer Sara Gilbert revealed more about Roseanne Conner’s grandson Mark, played by the young actor Ames McNamara. Mark is a sweet, funny, charming kid who likes to dress in clothing traditionally worn by girls.

However, it would be incorrect to assume that Mark’s taste in clothing means that the character is transgender or gay, Gilbert said. The character simply “likes wearing that kind of clothing.”

“I don’t want to pigeonhole him and say just because he dresses this way, that’s the only thing about him,” Gilbert told EW. “He happens to dress that way but he’s an amazing, creative, brilliant kid, which you will see, and so is the kid, Ames, who plays him.”

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Roseanne's grandson Mark will be played by actor Ames McNamara.

Gilbert ― who also plays Darlene, Roseanne’s daughter and Mark’s mom ― said that the young character is based on real children she knows who also choose to dress in clothes not traditionally associated with the gender they were assigned. She said she wanted to create this kind of character because “it represents the world.”

“This is a show that’s always been able to represent the world and talk about it without being so issue-heavy. We can do it through the dynamics of the family,” Gilbert said.